How can you help a child who has trouble making friends?

Making friends is an important part of social development for all kids. But some kids have a much easier time than others. What are ways you can help your child if they are having trouble making friends in school?

7 Answers

By Janerae Fiore-Morrell
- Posted on Sep 15, 2012

61

The first thing that needs to be considered is why, why is your child having trouble? I have 2 sons, the older one has tons of friends and gets along with all kings of people. The younger son is very challenged when it comes to friends, he has a very short frustration tolerance and becomes agitated very easily. He can be very inflexible, loud, hyper, bossy and inappropriate. I got him some help with a therapist and language specialist/teacher. He has been diagnosed with ODD, oppositional defiance disorder. So once we understood why things were not going well the situation got a lot better for him and me. The hardest part was that he was so friendly and wanted friends so bad. Also, When I was a kid, in third grade, I was traumatized from my family moving. So my problems came from insecurity and inhibition I had a very hard time fitting in because I became the target of a bully.

Watch others first and learn their skills. Practice at home with your siblings and parents. Then proceed with neighbours, school friends, strangers, etc. must always be mindful not to release too much information about yourself. Propt question for others to answer more than you releasing too much of your personal information. Not all strangers are good people. Choose your friends wisely.

encourage them to join an extra curricular activity. It can be anything from a sport, to dance, to leadership, or glee club, or chess club... something that puts them interacting with others on a regular basis that have the same interests as your child.

my 16 yr old has the same problem she is adhd as well, I tell mine take time to know them, before you try and make friends, let them come to you then you see what you both, have in common, and go from there. mine gets depressed she says it alot on facebook to. writng in a journal helps you cope, when you dont have friends right off hand, you can go back and read what you wrote, and maybe explain it later if you find a good close friend.

Because she/he wants to be a winner, the best. The child is educated before school, before street games at home from their parents to follow high standards of behaviour and treatment. Town, Village, State is not a property and private. Well-intended should be understanding and not to claim. Mouth is for talking constructive stories. The world is saving the energy with thinking and we should not teach our children to spending unapropriate on unimportant things. You can help somebody just with shuting your mouth and finally you will have a friend.

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By Michelle Catherall
- Posted on Sep 26, 2012

1679

one of my sons has this 'problem' due in part to his being on the autism spectrum. He is different enough for people - children - who haven't known him since preschool and kinder, to think he's weird and not like him. There is one boy in particular in his class for which I know this is true. His 'best' friend is a boy who is also a little different but that is because he's part Asian and he has a wonderful innocent way about him. My son loves to play with girls and younger children and I wonder if this is because he has 2 younger and 1 older brother or if, like I did when I was younger, he finds a level of acceptance in the younger children that doesn't exist in children his own age. The next son down from this one I would not have thought had a problem making friends until it was mentioned in his report that he would benefit socially from play dates. He had his first one yesterday and was quivering with excitement on the way to school. His class has a couple of children who exhibit similar ways to him but he doesn't find friendships with these children. One of the parents who has done parent help more regularly there has said he is a very independent thinker and will observe and apply himself to his work without being distracted by others. She is also delighted by his nature - all the parents who have worked with him just adore him calling him a beautifully natured child. So with two children who have been classified by parents and teachers alike as beautiful intelligent etc etc, why do they have 'friend' issues I wonder? My eldest has his friends - and he's 'lovely, beautiful, smart and cheeky' and a lot of people accept him. He may not be the sportiest or the most popular but he has a way of being able to join in where there others don't.

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By Jaclyn Farrell
- Posted on Sep 24, 2012

317

Start with siblings, (if any) cousins, neighbors, church...Invite a few of his/her favorite friends from school to their birthday. Make play dates.